Tyler was born in the Sandhills of NC, and has had a deep passion for nature, particularly stream and river ecosystems, since he was a child. Tyler is currently finishing my thesis for an MS in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Appalachian State University. His research involved creating spatial models to determine ideal habitat for a threatened freshwater mussel species, Villosa vaughaniana, then conducting field surveys of those locations to validate the model’s accuracy. He hopes to carry over these skills to his new position at EQI through ACPC. He is also the proud father of a 2 year old daughter, who already loves coming out on field surveys with him!